My Love to Remember
by CinnamonSinner
Summary: Nariko has no recollection of her past.She meets the Spirit Detectives and the gang finds itself taking her in to protect her from a demon who plays with his victims.Her unknown past seems to lure unwanted trouble, but how is Hiei connected to her past?
1. Prologue

Disclaimer: I do not own YuYu Hakusho or it's characters. I DO own Nariko Tamayuki

YuYu Hakusho

**My Love to Remember**

Prologue

_There's a pulsing, throbbing pain on the back of my head. My hands and feet are numb with cold. I can't move any of my limbs._

_With that realization, I became aware that I was lying on a bed, with the soft, warm press of a blanket covering me. I tried to open my eyes to see my surroundings, but my eyelids were so heavy… I just want to let go and let this soft warmth envelop me._

_The soft murmur of voices dragged me back. I turned my head in their direction, trying to make out the words._

_" Thank you for bringing her in, who knows what might have happened to her on a night this cold," a voice murmured softly._

_"It was no trouble, has anyone found out who she is?" a second voice whispered._

_"No, we can only hope she'll wake soon," the first voice answered._

_"Look! She's stirring," the second voice murmured urgently._

_"Hey darlin', are you awake?" the first voice said from someplace nearby. "What's your name sweetheart?"_

_What WAS my name? I can't say I really knew, but I blurted out the first thing that came to mind. " Nariko, my name is Nariko Tamayuki," I murmured hoarsely, and suddenly I knew that I was right. I am Nariko. It just felt so right._

_"Where do you live? Is there anybody we can call to come get you?" the voice persisted._

_Was there anybody? If there was, I couldn't remember… "No," I answered after awhile. I was aware that the voice said something else, but I couldn't concentrate anymore. I felt myself slipping away, darkness creeping in from the edges of my mind, coming in to wrap me in its comforting warmth. The sensation of being enveloped in warmth was so familiar, so safe, like being enveloped by two warm, strong arms. Arms that belonged to someone that I knew would never let anything hurt me and would stay with me as my eyelids grew heavy and I sank into the blessed darkness…_


	2. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I don't own YuYu Hakusho or its characters. I DO own Nariko Tamayuki.

YuYu Hakusho

**My Love to Remember**

Chapter 1- "High School Confidential"

**Four Years Later**

I was still half a block away when I heard the bell ring from my school up ahead. "Goddamn it!" I cursed as I kept walking at my normal pace. It was barely my second week of school and I was already late again. Oh, well. My first period teacher already hated me. Go figure. I suppose it might have something to do about the way I dress. Today I was wearing my usual tight jeans and knee-high black boots with buckled straps along the sides, my usual thick black eyeliner framing my bright green eyes, a white wife-beater, and a form fitting black coat with the collar turned up, the buttons ending at the waist, but the rest of the coat flowing down to several inches above the knees, kind of like a simplified version of an 18th-century frock coat. I have long, black, choppy layered hair. The layers are cut very short along the top of my head, so I got short hairs sticking up in random directions, while my bangs are messy and choppy. But then again, it just might be me he didn't like.

Up until three weeks ago, I was living at an orphanage, but I accidentally set the roof on fire again. No one was hurt or nothing, but I was in deep shit. So I ditched the place. Never liked it there anyway. I been living there for about four years. I don't remember much of anything before that. I was told I was found unconscious in the snow somewhere and no one could find out anything about me. I don't even know exactly how old I am, except everyone assumed I was about 12 when they found me, so I guess now I'm about 16.

So I'm currently attending high school as a junior. I had to switch schools so the assholes at the orphanage couldn't find me. I've made friends with lots of different people over the past few years, I suppose some would think they're pretty shady. I guess I can't really deny that they are, including my boyfriend, Keiji, who's the leader of a local crew. But when I needed a place to go, I moved in with Keiji and the crew got me a job at an underground bar through some connections. So for now, I'm set.

By the time I finally made it to my first period class, I was about fifteen minutes late. I took a deep breath, braced myself for the worst, and walked into the room.

"-- and Tamayuki-san would be more than happy to give you a tour of the school," Mr. Teriyaki was saying as I was making my way to my seat at the back of the class.

"Huh?" I whirled around and saw four boys standing at the front of the class by Mr. Teriyaki. How could I have missed them when I walked in? I hadn't even heard anything the teacher was saying until he said my name. " I would be more than happy to do what now?" I heard a few giggles from behind me, but I ignored them.

"Tamayuki, I want you to escort these gentlemen in a tour of the school. If you did not wish to do so, you should not have been late and called attention onto yourself," Mr. Teriyaki said with a smug expression on his face.

'What the fuck! Goddamn asshole! He knows I still get lost around here,' I curse mentally. Out loud, I replied, "Sure thing Mr. T!" I smiled inwardly in satisfaction when his expression soured at my lack of anger.

"Nice to meetcha fellas! Follow me," I say cheerfully and stride out of the room without waiting to see if the boys were following. I hear the door close behind me and I cursed loudly, "Fucking a!"

"Well now, no need for such language," says a voice.

I turned to see one of the boys grinning at me. He had big dark brown eyes and black hair greased up into a pompadour. Something about him kind of reminded me of me. I couldn't help but like him immediately. "The name's Yusuke Urameshi," he said with a huge grin.

Suddenly, Yusuke lunged forward and fell flat on his face as a tall, awkward looking boy with greased up curly red hair pushed past him to kneel in front of me and take hold of my hand. "I'm the great Kazuma Kuwabara, at your service, m'lady. I would be honored if you would be my girlfri--" His words were cut short by Yusuke's fist appearing out of nowhere and catching him square in the jaw.

"OW! Urameshi! What was that for?!"

"You knocked me over, that's what it was for!"

By then, I had already forgotten about being pissed off at Teriyaki and was contemplating on whether to just ditch them, when a soft voice said from beside me, "Don't worry about those two, that's normal for them."

I turned to gaze directly into dazzling emerald green eyes. I blinked quickly when I realized I was staring and took in the rest of him. He had long, dark red hair and was actually very pretty, the only thing that kept him from looking girly was the fact that he was tall and had slightly broad shoulders, a sure sign of masculinity. He smiled warmly and introduced himself, " Pleasure to make your acquaintance Tamayuki-san. My name is Suichi."

"Call me Nariko," I mumbled, blushing slightly at his formality. I slid my gaze over to the last boy. He was pretty short, only about two inches taller than myself. He was dressed in all black, with long, gravity-defying black hair, and a white headband tied across his forehead. My gaze settled onto his eyes and I felt my breath catch in my throat. I was looking directly into startling scarlet eyes. 'He's got beautiful eyes,' I thought. He seemed frozen in place, his eyes a little too wide, and his intent gaze was slightly unnerving. I forced my expression to go cold and I said gruffly, "Whatcha lookin' at, hey? Take a picture, why don't ya? Geez.."

Before I had even finished speaking, his expression had gotten blank and distant. If I hadn't known any better, I would have thought he had heard what I was thinking… Nawwww.

"So what's your name, huh?" I mumbled nervously, feeling a little shy all of a sudden. "What's wrong with me? I'm never shy!' I thought.

"Hmph," 'scarlet-eyes' grunts, turns around, and wanders off.

"Aw, don't worry about Hiei," Yusuke says cheerfully.

"Hiei?" I ask.

"Yeah, shorty doesn't say much of anything," Kuwabara explains.

"Oh, well, ok. Whatever," I muttered.

"SO! How 'bout that tour, eh?" Yusuke says exuberantly, putting one arm around my shoulders. Strangely enough, it didn't bother me. If it was anyone else, I would have smacked them, but with Yusuke, it was pretty friendly, as in a big-brother / making-the-chick-feel-welcome-around-the-guys kind of way. It was actually kind of nice, and I continued to walk that way with the three boys, Yusuke on my left and Suichi at my right, Kuwabara at Yusuke's other side.

A couple minutes later, we were climbing the last few steps on the staircase. I paused in front of the door at the top, turned to face them, and announced, "I saved the best for last!" and pushed open the door.

"Uhm, Nariko? This is the roof.." Suichi says hesitantly.

"Yeah, I know," I say brightly.

"Heyyyy… you only showed us the bathrooms and the cafeteria!" Yusuke complains.

"Uhm, yeah, about that… That's because I don't really know where anything is… This is kinda my second week of school here, ehehe…" I said sheepishly, rubbing the back of my head. I could practically see the boys sweat drop.

Suichi was the first one to recover, "If you're new here too, then why did the teacher make _you _give us the tour?"

"Because he's an ass!" I answered promptly. "And besides, Teriyaki hates me. He'd do anything to fuck me over."

"BWAHAHA! TERIYAKI?!" Yusuke bursts out.

"YEAH! SOUNDS DELICIOUS! GIVE ME A SIDE ORDER OF RICE AND EGGROLLS!" Kuwabara adds.

I couldn't help but start cracking up, and seeing Suichi trying not to laugh at the teacher by raising a hand to his mouth and biting down on his thumb, but failing miserably made me laugh even harder. I left the boys guffawing over the teacher's ridiculous name and made my way over to sit against the wall near the door to the stairs. I closed my eyes, raised my arms behind my head, and walked slowly, letting the breeze ruffle my hair.

/Watch your step, woman./

"Huh?" I opened my eyes and found myself staring directly at…. Nothing! "Kyaa!" I stumbled back and realized that I had almost walked off the edge of the roof. 'Geez! What's the matter with me today?! Stupid dumbass!' I cursed myself mentally.

/Hmph. I'll say/

"Wha-?" I blinked several times and shook my head.

"Hey, you alright over there Nariko?" Yusuke called. I turned to face the boys and spotted Hiei standing above the door we had first come through, hands in his pockets and a smirk on his face.

"Oh, there you are Hiei. I was beginning to wonder when we would be seeing you again," Suichi says, craning his neck back to look at Hiei as he spoke.

"Hmph, there wouldn't be any point in leaving now," Hiei answers, his eyes flicking over to me and looking away. It happened so quickly that I wondered if I imagined it. He hopped down from above the doorway, landing lightly on his feet. Distantly, I heard the bell ring for second period down below.

"Nariko, I think we should go back down for class," Suichi said softly from beside me. I sighed loudly and groaned, but nodded.

It turned out that first period wasn't the only class I had with the four boys. I had Suichi in my second period, Yusuke and Kuwabara in third, and Hiei in fourth. Suichi of course, cheated and used his dazzling smile and charm on the teacher, who was defenseless against such a relentless attack, so Suichi ended up sitting next to me. I suspected Yusuke had secretly bribed the teacher to let him and Kuwabara pick their seats, but maybe I'm being too harsh on him…. Naww. Hiei had been asked to sit in the front, but I rescued him and told the teacher I had been charged with showing him the ropes around here, so he was allowed to sit by me in the back. It was a lie of course, but Hiei seemed perfectly willing to play along. Or maybe he just didn't want to be sitting next to that weird kid with the cross eyes. I dunno. Once he joined me though, he didn't say much, but I wasn't offended, Yusuke had already warned me and I took the opportunity to chatter away.

After what felt like an eternity later, I was weaving my way through the crowd of students to where I normally sat during lunch, under a large oak tree not too far from the rest of the lunch tables. Hiei had disappeared after I turned my back on him to put my doodles back in my book bag when the bell rang for lunch. I figured I'd run into him sooner or later. I was ignoring the lunch lines and vaguely noticed that most of the students in my path were scurrying aside to let me pass. It didn't make much sense to me why, I mean, physically I wasn't very imposing. Although I hated to admit it, everyone else towered over me.

But I hadn't been very successful in making new friends. I was pretty outgoing and talkative, but it seems that most people find me a little intimidating. Then again, it might have had something to do with the fact that I had broken some kid's nose on my first day when he tried to hit on me and was being a little too pushy. What can I say? News spreads.

"Nariko!"

I turned to where the voice came from and saw Yusuke waving frantically from the lunch line, a tray in one hand overflowing with food. Kuwabara was right behind him with a similar tray, already stuffing his face. I grinned and waved back, pausing to let them catch up.

"Where you headed little lady?" Yusuke grinned. I let the "little" comment slide. I was starting to suspect that Yusuke was going to be able to get away with a lot of things with me. Damn.

I jabbed a thumb in the direction of the tree.

"Ok, lead the way!"

I stared.

Yusuke's grin faltered. "Unless you don't want us along…"

"No! 'Course I don't mind," I smiled. "But you sure you wanna kick it with me? If you haven't noticed, I ain't all that popular." I waved a hand vaguely at the rest of the students. A quick glance told me that there was now a wide empty space around us, the wave of students parting to walk around us, like we were some huge rock in the middle of a stream.

Yusuke gave a long whistle. Kuwabara leaned over his shoulder and asked in a low voice, "Damn, what'd you do? Kill a teacher? Everyone seems pretty uneasy, and I'm pretty sure it's not because of Urameshi and me. We haven't done anything yet and I'm almost positive no one around here knows our reputation."

I cringed slightly, positive that they would decide not to sit with me after all, but figured they'll hear it eventually. "Some guy was hitting on me on my first day and wouldn't leave me alone, so I sorta… broke his nose…" I closed my eyes and held my breath, but their reaction made my eyes snap open.

Yusuke and Kuwabara were holding their sides, laughing. "Damn! Urameshi, she's definitely one of us!" Kuwabara gasped in between bouts of laughter. "No kidding! Way to go kiddo!" Yusuke chokes out and flings an arm over my shoulder and ruffles my hair.

"Hey! Leggo!" I manage to wriggle away from him, half laughing too. "Watch the 'do!"

We all finally reach the tree and collapse under the shade, joking and punching each other boisterously. The guys seemed tentative to treat me so roughly at first, but once I planted one on Kuwabara hard enough to bruise, they seemed reassured that I wouldn't break down and start bawling.

"Hey Kurama! Over here!" Yusuke calls out.

I wondered who he was talking to, but I spotted Suichi making his way towards us. I turned to Yusuke with a puzzled look. "Why'd you call him Kurama?"

"Oh, ehehe.. Did I say that?" Yusuke says nervously, raising a hand and scratching his cheek with one finger. "Well, uh… It's just that.. Uh.."

"Suichi's my real name, but Kurama is kind of a… nickname." I turned to see Suichi smiling, standing in front of us.

"Hmm… Kurama huh.." I said to myself thoughtfully. I looked up at him again and grinned. "I like it."

Something small and hard hit me on the top of the head, bounced off, and landed in my lap. "Ow!" I rubbed my head and saw that it was an apple. I looked up to see where it came from, wondering if I was going to need to take cover, and saw Hiei sitting on a tree branch above my head, leaning against the trunk, arms behind his head, with his eyes closed.

"Hiei?" I asked uncertainly.

"I noticed you didn't have a lunch," he said, not bothering to open his eyes.

I blinked stupidly. Then it dawned on me. This was his way of being nice!

"Thanks!" I grinned happily at him and munched on the apple enthusiastically, the juice dribbling down my chin. Someone shoved a napkin in front of my face. I turned to see who it was and was shocked to see Hiei kneeling beside me, holding out the napkin, not looking at me. When I didn't react right away, he sighed and wiped my face himself.

'How'd he get down so fast??'

/Hmph./

'There it goes again! What the fuck.' I closed my eyes and shook my head. When I looked back, he was gone. A slight rustle made me look up, and there was Hiei, as if he hadn't even moved.

'Shit. I'm losing it…..well… damn…' I thought darkly.

A low chuckle made me look up. "What's so funny?" I demanded.

Hiei ignored me and closed his eyes again.

'Whatever dude,' I thought, turning my attention back to the boys. Kurama was watching Yusuke and Kuwabara have a meatloaf eating contest with a bemused expression. It looked like Yusuke was winning. Ew. Meatloaf.

The rest of the day was pretty uneventful, except for the fact that I had at least one of the boys in every period. I was stuck alone with Kuwabara in fifth. Argh. Gag me with a spoon. Sixth period was great, I had Kurama and Hiei together. Seems like Hiei has the most respect for Kurama. Kurama even got him to join in the conversation… sorta.


	3. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I don't own YuYu Hakusho or its characters. I do own Nariko and Keiji.

A/N: Ok, so here's the second chapter. Hope y'all like. It's gonna get aot better later on, don't worry. I'm curious to know what y'all think. Cuz I ain't even sure if this story's even worth continuing haha. So feedback is appreciated. :

YuYu Hakusho

**My Love to Remember**

Chapter 2 - "Dark Lonely Street"

**Several Weeks Later**

It was getting dark as I was walking home after work. After waiting on tables all afternoon, I was exhausted. For an illegal underground bar, it can get pretty packed.

The streets were nearly completely empty on this side of town. The side streets will give me the most direct route home. The dim streetlamps were like pools of safety stretched out before me, in between each pool were thick shifting shadows, as if they were on the verge of overflowing and swallowing what little light there was. Creeped out? Me? …. Nawww.

I shoved my hands into the pockets of my coat and trudged forward, picking up my pace slightly, eager to get home. Boisterous laughter shattered the stillness up ahead. I hesitated for a fraction of a second, but I thought to myself, 'Aw, fuck it. I'm tired. If they know what's best for 'em, they wont fuck with me.'

I kept walking in the direction I was going, not pausing when the men leaning against the wall at the entrance to an alley jeered and catcalled as I passed by. I quickly took in their appearance. It looked like there were five of them, all drunkards that had gotten thrown out of the bar earlier. 'Pfft, I can take 'em,' I smirked to myself. 'Although, I'd rather it not go there…' I admitted to myself grudgingly.

After I had left the noisy banter behind me, I felt a tension I hadn't even noticed was there drain out of me. My shoulders slumped and I burrowed down into the comforting warmth of my coat, my upturned collar obscuring most of my face. The sound of screeching tires snapped me out of my reverie. Instinctively, I took two steps to the side, and the car came to an abrupt stop precisely where I had been standing, my knees brushing against the bumper. I raised a boot-covered foot, hands still in my pockets, and kicked in the front of the grill, leaving a perfect imprint of my foot. "Watch it, asshole!" I shouted angrily.

The driver stepped out of his car, waving his arms and shouting profanities at me. I ignored him and kept walking, reaching the other end of the crosswalk, muttering under my breath. The car screeched past me, horn blaring. "Shove it!" I yelled, raising a hand and flipping him off. The car turned a corner and the smothering silence came crashing over the street again.

I trudged forward a few steps, and stopped abruptly. I heard footsteps behind me, a quick glance over my shoulder told me it was those yahoos from the alley. 'Aw, great,' I thought angrily. 'That dumbass driver distracted me long enough for them creep up on me.'

I turned a corner and shortly heard them round the same corner, not too close. 'They're up to something..' Suddenly, I walked right into something solid and stumbled back. " Sorry," I muttered, stepping around the person to keep walking.

"Nari-chan!"

I turned to glance at who it was and felt an arm go around my neck and Yusuke pulled me into a headlock, ruffling my hair.

"Yusuke!" I managed to gasp.

"The one and only!" Yusuke said cheerily.

"What the hell are you doing here?" I demanded, wriggling away from his grasp.

"I was at the arcade," he says, indicating at a shopping bag full of prizes in one hand.

"Hey, Yusuke, see those guys back there? I think they're following me," I muttered.

Yusuke's face took on a serious expression. "You sure?"

"Yeah, I think they're up to something. Pretend you're leaving and take a detour, then meet me at the corner up ahead," I whispered quickly.

Yusuke's face split into a sudden grin. "I get it. Like an ambush."

"Yep," I grinned. Raising my voice loud enough to carry, I said, "Well, I'll see ya later Yusuke!" Yusuke winked at me and was gone. I started walking again, at a slower pace to give Yusuke time to reach the corner. I heard the clink of a chain and the sound of several switchblades snapping open behind me.

Once I made it to the corner, a quick glance out of the corner of my eye showed me Yusuke leaning against the wall, arms crossed over his chest, an anticipatory smirk on his face. I nodded slightly to him and turned to face the guys behind me.

"Alright fellas, who are you and what do you want? Walking with you breathing down my neck is really starting to get on my nerves," I said casually as I lit a cigarette, leaving it between my lips and letting my hands slip back into my coat pockets. "Come on, who's gonna answer me? I ain't got all night."

A low chuckle spread around the whole group. One of the guys darted forward and jabbed his blade at me. I dodged easily and he stumbled. I drew one hand out of my pocket and drove my elbow into the back of his neck. He collapsed with a thud and I turned back to face the rest of them, a faint smirk on my face.

"Now is that any way to treat a lady? You didn't even give her a fair warning," Yusuke said, drawing close to the guy with the chain from behind. He grabbed his wrist and coiled the chain he was still holding around his neck. The guy scrabbled at the chain desperately, unable to reach at Yusuke's arms. I drew in close and raised a foot, driving my boot into his gut. Yusuke released him and let him double over on the floor gasping.

"Look out!" I yelled, raising a fist and plunging it into another guy's face that was just about to shove a blade into Yusuke's ribs. Blood squirted from his nose, spraying onto my coat. "Argh! Goddamn it! I just washed this!"

"Argh, stupid whore! I'll show you!" another guy came at me swinging his fists, I stepped aside and Yusuke swung an upper cut and caught him in the jaw. He wobbled for a moment and fell over, smacking his head on the concrete.

I turned my attention to the last guy and saw his knees shaking. I stood before him, leaning my face in close, blowing smoke out of my nostrils. "Boo!"

"Kyaa! Don't hurt me, please!" he collapsed to his knees, bowed his head, and clapped his hands together as if in prayer. "He told us that if we didn't take you out, he'd go after our mothers!"

"Who?" Yusuke demanded.

"I'm not supposed to say. If he finds out, he'll kill me!" he stammered.

"You better spill the beans buddy, or I'll do much worse than just kill you," I said lazily, blowing smoke in his face.

He gulped loudly. "It was Keiji! But please, don't tell him I told!" he confessed.

I felt my insides go cold. So Kieji wanted me out of the way, huh? Fine. "Who the fuck is Keiji??" Yusuke asked.

"He's my boyfriend," I said hollowly. I dropped the cigarette and stamped it out.

"WHAT! What kind of boyfriend orders some goons to ice his own girlfriend??" Yusuke yells in disbelief, tightening his fists. "Argh! That's so stupid!!"

I turned and started walking away, leaving the guy still kneeling on the floor. "Hey, Nariko, wait up!" Yusuke grabbed his bag of prizes from where he'd left it and hurried to catch up with me. "Wait!" he grabbed my arm and turned me to face him. "Where are you going?"

"Home," I replied, my voice distant.

"You can't go back there! You told me the other day that you moved in with your boyfriend after you ditched that orphanage. Listen to me! He just got a bunch of goons to snuff you out and you're going to go to him?! Are you nuts??" Yusuke ranted.

"I'm not staying. I'm going to go get my stuff," I replied calmly.

"I don't think you should go alone. Listen, do you know where you're gonna stay?"

"…. No.."

"In that case, you're going to come crash at my place. No arguments."

I snapped out of my stupor and looked at him sharply. "Stay with you? Are you kidding?"

"Naw, I'm serious," Yusuke grinned. "You didn't think I'd let my buddy out in the streets did ya? My ma won't mind, she's never home anyway. You can share my room with me!" He produced a little stuffed penguin from his bag of prizes. "I got this one for you. I was going to give this to you at school, but I guess I'll hand it over now." He smiled.

I looked at him blankly for a moment and felt my face split into a wide smile. "I've never had anyone really give a shit about me before for as long as I can remember…" I blinked furiously to try to fight away those traitorous tears.

"Well now you do kid. You can count on us," Yusuke murmured, wrapping an arm around my shoulders and nudged me forward. I started walking, leaning my head against his shoulder.

"Us?" I asked, puzzled.

"The gang, dumbass!" he said playfully. "Kuwabara, Kurama, Hiei… any one of us would help ya in a tight spot. Even Hiei seems to kinda like you, and he don't like anybody! Haha. Though don't tell him I told you that, he'll never admit it," Yusuke smiled down at me. I looked at him skeptically. Most of the time I felt like I was a nuisance to him. Dude. Sweet.

Several minutes later, I was climbing the last few steps that led to Keiji's shabby apartment. I pushed the door open and stepped in, turning on the light. "It looks like there's nobody home," Yusuke muttered. "Damn. I wanted to cave his face in.."

I headed to the bedroom and grabbed my duffel bag. I heard a crash from the living room and sighed. "Yusuke! Quit messing around and help me pack!" Yusuke strolled into the room, hands in his pockets, and a lampshade on his head.

I looked at him for a moment, but decided it'd be best if I didn't say anything. I turned my attention back to stuffing my bag full of clothes.

"Ooooh! Looky here!" Yusuke said from someplace behind me. "Lace! Pretty swanky Nariko!" I turned to look at him and saw him trying on one of my bras.

"Yusuke!" I smacked him in the back of the head.

"OW!"

I finished packing my stuff and we left. We made it to Yusuke's house half an hour later. Yusuke led me to his room and he dumped my stuff on the floor next to his closet.

"So!" Yusuke turned and regarded me critically. "You hungry kiddo? You're so small, you MUST be underfed!"

I opened my mouth to recite a string of profanities, mostly consisting about some of his anatomically tiny things, but at that moment, my stomach growled loudly. I stopped and nodded sheepishly. "Alright! Let's go see what we can dig up!" he grinned at me, probably aware of what I had been about to say.

We raided his fridge and several hours later, we lay amid mountains of candy wrappers, potato chips, and popcorn, the TV just playing white noise since the end of the movie. I turned to look at Yusuke beside me on the bed and stifled a giggle. He was snoring loudly, mouth hanging open, and a huge snot bubble inflating and deflating along with his breathing.

I grabbed my penguin from where it had fallen on the floor. 'I always wanted a brother..' I thought sleepily. I yawned loudly and cuddled in closer to Yusuke. My last few thoughts as I drifted off to sleep was that I just might have found somebody that really did think I belonged. I sighed contentedly and threw an arm across his waist, breathing in the faint aroma of B.O.


	4. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: I do not own YuYu Hakusho and its characters. I do own Nariko. Batmobile and The Chop Tops are actual bands. I don't own them.

A/N: It's always bugged me that everyone thinks Yusuke and Kuwabara put gel in their hair. It's not gel! It's GREASE. Yeah, that's right, in case y'all haven't noticed, Yusuke and Kuwabara are Japanese greasers. And seeing as how I'm a rockabilly gal myself, I was compelled to clarify this fact as you will all see. Y'all enjoy!

YuYu Hakusho

**My Love to Remember**

Chapter 3- "Subcultural Girl"

**The Next Morning**

"Ah! Urameshi! What the hell did you do to Nariko?! That's it, you and me gotta duke it out right now! I've gotta defend her honor!"

I blinked sleepily and turned towards the door. Kuwabara was standing at the doorway, blushing furiously, flipping out. A pretty blue haired girl was looking over his shoulder, her pink eyes wide. "Perhaps this is a bad time. Come on Kuwabara, let's go! Don't worry about us, we'll just leave you two alone!" She tugged at his sleeve, giggling nervously.

"No! Urameshi, get up! No doubt you tricked her into a false sense of security, then took advantage of her trust and swooped down at her and stole her virtue! What do you have to say for yourself?" Kuwabara ranted.

I looked at him like he just sprouted a second head. "Wha-?!"

"Kuwabara, what the hell are you babbling about?" Yusuke propped himself up on one elbow beside me, stifling a yawn and rubbing his eyes.

"Don't play dumb with me! I'm not an idiot ya know! What are you and Nariko doing sleeping on the same bed??"

Something clicked in my mind and I was suddenly wide awake. "Wait, you think..?" I trailed off and glanced at Yusuke. He turned to me at the same time, apparently realizing what Kuwabara meant at the same moment I did. We exchanged glances briefly and burst out laughing.

"What the hell's so funny?!"

"You idiot! It's not like that!" Yusuke gasped.

"What's all this yelling about?" a girl with short brown hair appeared beside the blue haired girl. The blue haired girl jumped and tried to block her view of the room. "Wait, Keiko! Why don't we go see what we can get for breakfast??"

"Botan, what are you trying to hide? Yusuke, you lazy bum, are you still in bed?" Keiko pushed her way past Botan and into the room. She stopped abruptly and stared.

"Bwa!! Keiko?! What are you doing here??" Yusuke cried, his laughter cut short.

She turned and walked out of the room. Yusuke scrambled off the bed and stumbled after her. "Wait! Keiko, it's not what you think!" He said something else, but the rest was muffled. There was a sharp slap and Keiko was ranting. Yusuke mumbled something and she quieted down.

I realized that I had been left alone with Kuwabara and the girl whose name was apparently Botan. They were both looking at me oddly. "What?" I asked nervously.

"Okay Nariko, if it's not what we think, then what the hell are you doing in Yusuke's bed?" Kuwabara asked suspiciously.

"Oh, well, it's kind of a long story, haha!" I said, rubbing the back of my head.

Yusuke walked back into the room, a bright red hand print across his face, leading a fuming Keiko by the hand. "Nariko, we should explain everything so these guys wont get the wrong idea," Yusuke looked at me pleadingly.

"It's a little late Yusuke, we already got the 'wrong idea,'" Keiko said haughtily.

'Oops,' I thought. I nodded at Yusuke. We both went over the events of last night, ending with how we had just dozed off after the movie, putting emphasis on the fact that Yusuke fell asleep first.

By the end of our explanation, Botan and Keiko were both looking at me worriedly. "You poor thing! How awful!" Botan fussed.

"You must be terrified! Having your own boyfriend wanting you dead!" Keiko exclaimed, tears glittering in her eyes.

"No really, I'm fine! Honest, I've had people out to get me before. I always seem to get mixed up with the wrong crowd!" I said hurriedly, trying to reassure them, hands raised in front of me. But my explanation seemed to make it worse. They fussed about how awful that was and ushered me into the kitchen to make me breakfast. I think they were trying to comfort me. I was a bit uncomfortable with their attention, but thought it would be rude to refuse, especially when Keiko seemed to have forgotten about earlier.

Yusuke wandered in several minutes later as I was shoveling down some of Keiko's French toast, his hair freshly greased and combed back. He had left his jeans, but changed into a clean white shirt, since the one he had yesterday had flecks of blood on it. I had dumped my coat somewhere on Yusuke's floor last night and had left on my white wife beater that I had underneath. Kuwabara slumped into a chair beside me and Yusuke took the one across.

"Yusuke, you better hurry up and eat, you've got school today. My school is nearby, so I don't have to worry, but I don't want you getting into trouble," Keiko said from the stove.

Yusuke gave a wide yawn and put his arms behind his head. 'Aw, come on Keiko, it's Friday. I don't feel like going today."

"Yusuke--" Keiko started.

"Aw, come on Keiko, give the boy some slack. He did play hero yesterday!" Botan cheerily interrupted.

"I don't feel up to going today. And I wouldn't want to stay all alone, either," I added. I stuck out my bottom lip and gave her sad puppy-dog eyes. As I suspected, her sympathy for what happened yesterday kicked in and she hesitated.

"Well…. I guess just one day is okay…" she relented. I grinned and took a swig of orange juice. Keiko departed shortly afterwards, saying something about wanting to get there early for some student council meeting.

I heard a ringing noise, I turned to Botan questioningly. "Uh, Botan? Your pants are ringing…"

"Oh! Why, yes it is. Eheheh.. I'll just go take this call somewhere else. Enjoy your breakfast everyone!" she gets up hastily and leaves the room. I finished my breakfast and turned to Yusuke. "You mind if I use your shower? I feel icky."

"Yeah, sure, help yourself," he says with his mouth full.

"Haha it's probably from sleeping next to Urameshi," Kuwabara laughs.

Yusuke gives him a death glare. "Shut up!"

I left the kitchen laughing to myself. I head for Yusuke's bedroom to get some clean clothes out of my duffel bag.

"Yes sir, Koenma sir. Right away!" I hear Botan say.

"Uh… Botan, why are you talking to your compact?" She snaps it closed and whirls around, rubbing the back of her head. "Oh, ehehe.. No reason, really, I just like to give it a little… pep talk! Yeah!"

"Uhm… okay.. Whatever tickles your pickle," I shrugged. I grabbed some clothes and headed for the bathroom. I emerged from my shower half an hour later, drying my hair with a towel. I didn't bother putting on shoes and just slipped on a pair of jeans and was about to put on a tight fitting Batmobile shirt, I had cut off the collar years ago, because the necklines on t-shirts bugged me, so the collar was cut low around my shoulders. As I was drying off my hair first, a Batmobile song popped into my head. I sang out obnoxiously loud, "Having a real good party, music plays out loud. The neighbors didn't like it, they banged the doors and shout. I told 'em to get stuffed, don't trouble me no more, but after half an hour, there was police at the door, police at the door! We're all in the dance hall, the band just plays it hot. The whole joint started rockin', the place was torn apart. The room just didn't hold it and fell onto the floor, I heard a siren coming, it's police at the door, police at the door!"

The door banged open and Kuwabara burst in excitedly. "I love that song! Police at the door! Police at the door!" he sang.

"Kyaa! Kuwabara, get the fuck out!" I threw a shampoo bottle at him and it hit him on his face. He stumbled out clutching his nose, shouting an apology. I came out of the bathroom five minutes later, still a little miffed. I found the boys in Yusuke's room, watching TV. I was ready to start yelling at Kuwabara, but one look at his face and I couldn't help but grin at the bandage across his nose.

I glanced around the room and asked, "Hey, where's Botan?" The guys looked up and Yusuke answered, "She had to go. She told me to tell you bye." He patted the bed next to him and I sat down "So, Kuwabara tells me you were singing in the bathroom. I didn't know you like psychobilly," he grinned, his eyes lighting up.

"Hell yeah I do! What of it?" I asked.

Kuwabara leaned over Yusuke to look at me excitedly, "Hey we listen to psychobilly too! Do ya dig rockabilly?"

"Yeah, 'course I do. And yeah, I already figured as much when I first met ya," I replied.

"Wait, how'd you know?" Yusuke asks, surprised.

"Aw, come on! Yours and Kuwabara's hair gave it away. I mean, it just screams 'greaser!'" I said, rolling my eyes. "Only a complete dumbass wouldn't see it."

Kuwabara grinned. "That's right, we're both just a couple of rockabilly rebels, aren't we Urameshi? Delinquent is my middle name!"

Yusuke laughs. "Fuck yeah! But ya know, Nari-chan, most people don't even know what the hell rockabilly is, let alone recognize us for what we are."

"Well that's because most people are morons who don't know shit about subcultures and their music roots," I retorted.

The boys laughed and agreed. I mentioned I had my CD case in my bag and they jumped at the chance to check it out. They both dove into my duffel bag, searching for the CD case. "Hey, what's this?" Kuwabara held up a thin silver chain. It had three completely round jewels, they kind of looked like pearls, but I was positive they weren't. The one in the middle was swirled with black and white, and there was a pure white one and a pitch black one on either side of it.

"Hey isn't that a Hiruiseki Stone?!" Yusuke asked incredulously, pointing at the white stone. I looked at him blankly. "A what stone? Fuck if I know. I've had it for as long as I can remember. Remember I told you I don't remember anything from before the orphanage? Well this is the only thing I've got from my past. Even though I don't remember where I got this, I have a feeling that it's very important to me."

Yusuke and Kuwabara exchanged glances I didn't understand. "What?" I asked suspiciously.

"Naw, it's nothing!" Yusuke said, raising a hand and scratching his cheek with one finger. "Ooooh! Is that a Chop Tops CD??" he snatched a CD Kuwabara was holding up.

"If it's so important to you, you should wear it," Kuwabara said, inspecting the necklace. Yeah, why not? Don't think I'll lose it here. I nodded and he helped me clasp it in the back. We spent the majority of the day playing music, discussing the different genres in my collection, and I raided Yusuke's CD collection. Then we all filed into the living room and played Donkey Kong Country on Yusuke's Super Nintendo. Yusuke beat us obviously, since it's his game, but I, of course, beat more levels than Kuwabara.

Late in the afternoon, the three of us had moved on to a racing game on Yusuke's PS2. "Move it, you idiot! Come on! Bring it!" I yelled at the TV screen, maneuvering around a sharp turn.

"I got you beat! Just give up Nariko!" Kuwabara said smugly.

"Never!!" I cried. At the last minute, I smacked him upside the head with my controller and made him crash into a wall, letting me cross the finish line first. "I win!!"

"Hey, you cheated!!" Kuwabara complained, rubbing his head while Yusuke rolled on the floor laughing.

"Hmph, if you idiots are quite done, then perhaps we can get down to business. I've been standing here for awhile," said a voice from behind us. We all jumped and whirled around. Hiei was leaning against the far wall, arms crossed over his chest.

"Oh shit, how long have you been there?" I asked, surprised.

"Hmph," he ignored me and turned to the boys. "The reason I'm here is because I was sent to get you two bakas. The fox is already waiting."

"The who? Where? Wha?" I looked back and forth between them, confused. They all ignored my questions and the boys got up and went to put on some shoes. "Will somebody tell me what the hell is going on??" I demanded, frustrated.

"Sorry Nari-chan, we gotta go. We'll be back soon. Remember, mi casa es tu casa!" Yusuke said, the three of them heading for the door.

"Wait, Yusuke! Where are you guys going? What if your mom comes home?! I haven't even met the woman! What the hell am I supposed to tell her??" I whined, padding after them.

"Oh, don't worry about her. Just tell her I said it was ok for you to stay with us. My ma wont mind, besides, I think she'll like ya!" They left and I was stuck by myself. "Well this sucks," I said aloud to no one in particular. I raided his fridge and plopped down on the couch to watch TV.


	5. Chapter 4

YuYu Hakusho

**My Love to Remember**

Chapter 4- "Someone's Out to Get Me"

**No One's P.O.V.**

"Aw, man! Wonder what binky breath wants now?" Yusuke complained as they walked down a long hall lined with thick pillars on either side, on their way to Koenma's office.

"Yeah, I feel pretty bad leaving Nariko all alone like that," Kuwabara said. "Especially after what happened to her yesterday…"

Kurama steps out from beside a pillar and asks softly, "And may I ask, what exactly happened to our dear Nariko?"

Hiei looks at Yusuke sharply, "Yes, and why are her things in your room?"

"Huh?" Yusuke looks at Hiei blankly for a moment, then his face splits into a mischievous grin. "Why Hiei, I didn't know you cared."

Hiei turns his back on them and says sharply, "Just answer the question Detective."

"Well, it's like this. Last night, Urameshi runs into Nariko and she's got these guys following her, see. So Urameshi and her totally kick their butts and one of them 'fesses up! It turns out her boyfriend made them go after her to snuff her out. Isn't that some crazy shit, or what?" Kuwabara explains.

"Yeah, and I couldn't let her go back there or leave her to wander around in the streets could I? So I told her it would be ok for her to stay at my place," Yusuke chimes in.

"Well, that seems to answer both our questions, doesn't it Hiei?" Kurama says, turning his attention to the other yokai.

"That bastard!" Hiei growls, fists shaking in anger. He steps forward and seems to disappear.

"Well that was weird.." Yusuke says.

"What's gotten into shorty?" Kuwabara asks Kurama.

"I'm not sure, he wont tell me. But I suspect that he may care for her more than he lets show. It's strange.. I never would have thought he would concern himself over a ningen girl…" Kurama trails off thoughtfully.

They finally reached the end of the hallway several minutes later. They step into Koenma's office, to find Koenma stamping papers and Hiei leaning against the far wall.

Koenma hopped up onto the desk, looking at them sternly. "It's about time!"

"Yeah, yeah.." Yusuke waves him off. "What do you want binky breath?"

Koenma's eye twitches, but he ignored him and turned to a large screen. "We found some more information on the demon we are after. As you already know, it's a middle class demon that slipped into the Ningekai a few months back. Our informants tell us his next victim is a ningen currently attending the school you boys enrolled in."

"We already knew that! Don't tell us you made us come all this way to tell us what we already knew!" Yusuke interrupted.

"Quiet!" Koenma threw the large rubber stamp he was using earlier, hitting him square in the forehead. He straightens up, clears his throat, and continues, "Yes, well, as I was saying, intelligence managed to find more information on him. He plays games with his victims and manipulates other humans to do his dirty work for him, mostly through threats and torture. He likes to befriend his human victims, and when they come to depend on him, he forces other ningens to kill them. Recently, he has become a little more daring. He has gained control of a local gang of dangerous delinquents and has taken a human girlfriend, even having her living with him. It is our best educated guess that she may be his next intended victim and the same ningen student at your school we were looking for."

"What the hell?! What kind of wacko is this guy anyway?" Kuwabara says, frustrated. "What's he look like? Oh, lemme at him! I'll make him cry home to his mommy!"

"He has the power to change his appearance at will. Currently, he is posing as a ningen male by the name of Keiji. We don't know when he will assume a new identity, so I suggest you find him quickly! If his intended victim manages to elude his first attempts, he gets frustrated and goes after them himself in a violent rage! Believe me when I say, it's not pretty," Koenma warns. "So get to it!"

"Wait, did you say Keiji??" Yusuke cried, absently trying to rub off the mark on his forehead.

"Urameshi, isn't that the name of Nariko's boyfriend?? Oh man, how fucked up is this?" Kuwabara says, alarmed.

"Cool it, Kuwabara. She's safe. She's at my house, remember?" Yusuke says.

"Who's Nariko?" Koenma asks, puzzled.

"It seems that the ningen we were seeking to protect has been right under our noses." Kurama explains. He gives a Koenma a brief summary of what Yusuke and Kuwabara told him.

"Hmm… well in that case, it is most likely that he has already moved his living quarters," Koenma thinks aloud.

"I don't think it's wise to allow her to stay in one place. Especially since the ningens that were after her got a good look at Yusuke. My guess is that they'll find out who he is and come looking for her at his house," Hiei speaks up.

Koenma looks at him and nods thoughtfully. "You may be right Hiei."

"Perhaps we should switch her living quarters periodically," Hiei suggests.

"You mean like have her stay with each of us in turn?" Kurama asks.

Hiei nods.

"Hey shorty, are you volunteering?" Kuwabara looks at him oddly.

"If it comes to that, I suppose I have to," Hiei answers, turning away and heading for the door.

"Well, that settles it!" Koenma claps his hands together. "I want that ningen girl safe and that demon taken care of!"


	6. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: I don't own YuYu Hakusho or it's characters. I DO own Nariko and Keiji.

A/N: Sorry it took so long to put this up y'all. I been trying not to fail anything [again -_-''] this year. And I've had a terrible case of writers block lol. Well, hope y'all like the new chapter. :]

YuYu Hakusho

**My Love to Remember**

Chapter 5- "Beer Makes Me Happy"

**That Same Night**

Yusuke, Kuwabara, and Kurama walked in to find Atsuko and I finishing up a bottle of liquor. We've been talking animatedly and laughing over a photo album spread between us on the kitchen table. As they stepped into the kitchen, we looked at Yusuke for a moment and broke into a fresh fit of giggles.

"What's so funny?" Yusuke asks, annoyed.

I giggled uncontrollably and held up a photograph. It was a picture of Yusuke when he was about two or three years old, he was butt naked except for a pillow case tied around his neck as a cape. He was in a superhero pose, one fist on his hip, the other raised up in the air.

"BWA!!!!!!! Ma!!! Why are you showing these??!!!" Yusuke snatched the photo from my hands, blushing furiously.

"Aw, come on Yusuke! I hardly ever get to show these to anyone! Look how cute you were!" Atsuko laughed, waving him off.

"Why, yes, he was quite adorable," Kurama said, flipping through the album.

"Yeah Urameshi, what happened? Eheheh…" Kuwabara teased, looking over his shoulder. "Haha! What a dork! Look, here's another nudie one!"

"Okay! Peep show's over!!" Yusuke snatched the album out of Kurama's hands and marched off with it, muttering under his breath. I giggled and turned to the others.

"So! Where'd you guys go that I wasn't allowed to come?" I demanded, pouting.

"Yeah! Yusuke that was very rude!" Atsuko called after him. "I found her here by herself watching TV!"

"We're terribly sorry Nariko," Kurama apologized. "But we had some business to take care of."

"What kind of business?" I asked, curious.

"Sorry kiddo. Can't say," Kuwabara grinned.

"You know, if Suichi wasn't involved, I'd think you boys were dealing drugs or something," Atsuko says, lighting a cigarette.

I giggled.

"Well thanks for the vote of confidence mom," Yusuke says, plopping down into a chair, album gone.

"Uh-huh," Atsuko replies absently. "Yusuke, hand me that bottle in the bottom cabinet, will ya?"

"You and Nariko already finished a whole bottle!" Yusuke protested. "Then I always have to run around after you to make sure you don't hit your head on something!"

"Yusuke, stop exaggerating," Atsuko says, getting up and getting it herself, popping the top off with an expert hand. "Besides, I just thought we'd celebrate that Nariko's gonna be staying with us!"

"You'd take any excuse to drink," Yusuke sighs. "Alright mom, gimme a glass."

"Well, I suppose I should be going now," Kurama announces, getting up. "Goodnight everyone."

"Aww, you've gotta stay!" I said, making a sad face. "Pwease?"

"Well… I suppose I can stay for a little while," Kurama amended.

"YAY!" I said happily, arms in the air.

I tried to get him to drink with us, but he declined, saying he didn't have much of a head for alcohol. I finally convinced him to take a beer.

We all got drunk off our asses, drinking until the early hours of the morning. Kurama started off sipping his beer, just watching the rest of us, but the next thing I knew, he was having a beer drinking contest with Atsuko. Kuwabara stumbled once on the way to the bathroom and got a bump on his head the size of Texas.

By the time we were starting to crash, Yusuke and Kuwabara were singing a duet on "Earth Angel" by The Penguins. It was terrible. I guess Yusuke wasn't too bad, but with Kuwabara singing, it was like listening to a dog with a cold.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

I awoke with a start, the blood pounding in my ears. My head was throbbing, it felt like I'd been bludgeoned by a sledgehammer. Any slight movement set off a fresh wave o throbbing pain and nausea.

'Man, how much _did_ I drink?' I wondered. 'I wonder why I woke up? Normally, with a hangover _this_ bad, I'd be knocked out 'til the next day.'

I groaned weakly and took a deep breath to muster up the willpower to raise my head to look at the digital clock on the DVD player. A quick glance told me we had all passed out in the living room. Atsuko was sitting in front of the coffee table, head in her arms, a half-empty bottle still clutched in her hand. Kurama was on the couch, arms spread out on the back of the seat, head thrown back, snoring softly. Yusuke and Kuwabara were sprawled all over each other, limbs tangled together by the front door. I spotted the clock and saw that it was barely 3:26 in the morning.

I flopped my head down again, it felt ten pounds heavier than it usually was. I lay there for a moment, fiddling with my chain around my neck, feeling myself getting drowsy. I was almost gone when a slight rustle snapped my eyes open. My gaze flicked around the room, looking for the source of the noise. Everything looked the same as before.

I listened intently and discerned the sound of muffled footsteps from the direction of the hall to the bedrooms. I felt my body tense. 'Is it Keiji??' I thought. The footsteps were getting closer and I could see a vague outline in the shadows in the hall.

I decided to wait until the figure got closer so I could strike. Let him think I was still sleeping. I realized I was shivering, the heater had been turned off hours ago. Goosebumps covered my arms and I resisted the urge to rub my arms.

The figure emerged into the living room and paused. I realized that it wasn't Keiji, this figure was much shorter. I relaxed somewhat, but was still suspicious. The figure walked over to where I was laying and stood looking down at me for a brief moment, then spread a blanket over me. 'What the hell?? Who is this?' I thought, taken completely by surprise.

The figure turned to go and that's when the faint light from the streetlamp that filtered through the blinds hit his face enough so I could make out his features. I shot my hand out and grabbed his ankle before he could go.

"Oomf!" he grunted, landing flat on his face. He turned to me sharply, rubbing his nose. "What the hell was that for, woman?!" he hissed.

"Sorry. I didn't want you to go yet," I apologized in a stage whisper.

He stiffened and looked away. "Why not?" he asked cautiously.

"Hmm… I dunno. No reason I guess," I said, thinking aloud. "I just feel very comfortable around you. Like I've known you my whole life or something even though I don't know a thing about you, ya know? You ever have that feeling?"

He studied me carefully for a moment and finally answered, "Yeah… I suppose I have." He started to rise to leave, but I grabbed his wrist. He turned to me, "What?"

"Will you… stay with me? Just for a little bit," I added quickly. "I don't feel so great right now."

He hesitated for a minute and seemed to be fighting some inner struggle. Finally, he gave in and without a word, lay on the floor next to me, his arms behind his head.

I scooted over closer and rested my head on the spot between his shoulder and neck, slipping an arm around his waist. He stiffened slightly, then relaxed after a moment. I cuddled in closer and noted how easily my head and limbs found just the right way to fit against him.

As I was drifting off to sleep, in the very back of my mind, I registered that his scent was so familiar… so safe. "Thanks for the blanket Hiei…" I murmured, slipping into comfortable darkness.

"Hmph."


	7. Chapter 6

-1Disclaimer: I don't own YuYu Hakusho or its characters. I DO own Nariko Tamayuki.

YuYu Hakusho

My Love to Remember

Chapter 6 - "She's So Bad, It's Good"

**The Next Morning**

The morning sunlight filtered through the blinds and hit me right in the face. I groaned and turned over, hiding my face from the light. Vaguely, I registered that Hiei was gone, but it didn't really surprise me. The smell of frying bacon finally lured me away from my little nest. I stumbled into the kitchen, rubbing my eyes groggily and plopping down into a chair and resting my head o the table. My stomach growled loudly.

"Mornin' Nariko," Kuwabara said cheerfully from the stove. "Want some breakfast?"

"You bet I do!" I said, raising my head. "What's for breakfast?"

"Bacon," he said. I waited for a minute and finally asked, "Bacon and what?"

"Just bacon. That's all Urameshi's got. You want some toast?" he answered.

I laughed. "Well, ok. Thanks Kuwabara!"

Yusuke emerged from the hallway, drying his hair with a towel. "Yusuke! You need to stock up," I said.

"Well, good morning to you too, Nariko," he said grumpily, sinking into the chair next to me.

"What's the matter?" I asked.

"Look at this," he passed me a note that was on the kitchen counter. It said, "Took off early, gonna be gone for a while. Clean up this mess from last night, will ya? Don't wait up for me! - Atsuko." There was a small caricature of a happy Atsuko flashing the peace sign next to the signature. I read through it quickly and couldn't help but laugh.

It's not funny! Look at this mess. Aw, we'll never finish," Yusuke said with a grimace. He gestured at the mess and I had to admit it looked pretty bad.

I wolfed down my bacon and toast, and three cups of coffee for the hangover. "Where's Kurama?" I asked with my mouth full.

"He had to go early. Said there was something he had to do," answered Kuwabara.

I finished my breakfast and showered quickly. I felt a little better after the shower and we spent the majority of the day cleaning, though most of it was spent goofing off. Kuwabara didn't seem to have much of a hangover and made fun of us all day. Eventually, I ended up chucking a beer can at his head.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

"Man, I'm bushed," Yusuke sighed, plopping down on the couch.

"Ditto,: I said, sprawling on the floor. "I can't believe Kuwabara ditched us! Asshole…" I complained.

"Yeah, like I give a crap that he had to feed Eikichi," he added. "Stupid cat…"

I giggled. "Dude, that's mean. Poor kitty."

"Like I give a crap," he grumbled.

"Hey, there was supposed to be a B movie marathon going on all afternoon at the old movie theater in downtown. Let's go kill some time," I suggested. "Your treat!"

"Well, alright, let's go," he laughed. "We can still catch some of the show if we go now."

There was an insistent pounding on the door and Keiko's voice carried through clearly, "Darn it, Yusuke! Come out here, now! Did you forget we had a date again? I've been waiting for you to come by my house for over an hour! Yusuke!!"

"Oh shit, somebody's in trouble," I said, turning to smirk at Yusuke.

"Aw, man! I totally forgot about the stupid date!" Yusuke said, starting to tiptoe away. "Hey, do me a favor. Tell her I already left!"

Before I could reply, the door banged open and a really pissed Keiko stood on the other side. "I heard that…" she said between gritted teeth. "Yusuke Urameshi, you put your shoes on right now!"

"Ah, yes ma'am!" Yusuke gave a nervous little salute and scampered off to his room.

I cracked up and shot a delighted grin at Keiko. "Aw, man! He's totally whipped! I ain't got any doubts on who's the dominant one in bed!"

Keiko's composure crumbled and she seemed to forget about her annoyance. She blushed furiously and seemed to be having trouble forming a coherent sentence. "Wha-?! We haven't…- that is…- it's not like that!!" she stammered.

I gave her a bemused look as I lit a cigarette. "What? You mean you two haven't done it yet? Huh…What are you waiting for missy?"

"Huh?… Well, you see…- We don't… I don't…" she trailed off, obviously flustered.

"Listen," I said lazily, taking a deep drag. "You love him don't you?"

"Well, yes, but…"

"And there's no mistaking on how much he loves you, right?" I smiled suddenly. "Otherwise, I don't think he would've stuck around so long. He seems too much like the hornball type."

She lowered her eyes in embarrassment, her face as red as a beet.

Before I could say anything else, Yusuke was back. "Alright, let's get this over with," he sighed.

"O…-okay," Keiko stammered, hurrying to the door, obviously relieved. Yusuke gave me a questioning look. I shrugged and grinned mischievously, wiggling my eyebrows at him. I ignored his baffled stare and shooed him along. "Have fun you two!" He shrugged and followed Keiko out the door.

The door closed after him and the sound echoed hollowly in the sudden stillness. My grin slowly slipped away and I sighed. "Well Nariko, it looks like it's just me, myself, and I tonight." I took one last deep drag and stamped out the remains of my cigarette on the ashtray on the coffee table. I lit another one and sat back, arms behind my head and my feet propped up on the coffee table.

I closed my eyes, trying to clear my mind. I could hear the clock from the kitchen as if it were being held up to my ear, the seconds ticking by. "I can't take this," I muttered. I sat up and stretched, yawning loudly. I put my boots on, grabbed my coat, and made sure I took the key Yusuke had given me. Five minutes later, I was trudging down Yusuke's street, wondering where the hell I was going.

As I reached a corner, the answer came to me as I stuck my hands in my pockets. 'Well, I'm broke. I think I should go pick up my last paycheck.' I purposefully walked towards my newfound destination, knowing full well that it wasn't a very good idea. Before I knew it, I was at the bar, which from the outside looked like an ordinary old warehouse.

I stepped in, blinking rapidly to get used to the dimness. A quick glance around the room showed me that the place was nearly empty, the only client's being the usual patrons. Nevertheless, Keiji was sure to be hearing about this soon, as it became all too clear as the occupants all turned the door upon my entry. I strode purposefully towards the bar in the back of the room, lighting a cigarette on the way. I took a seat at a barstool, noting only one other occupant at the bar counter at the far side against the wall, mostly hidden in shadow.

The barkeep had his back to me, cleaning out a glass with a filthy dish towel. "Hey Tatsu, bet you didn't expect to see me anytime soon," I said breezily, blowing out some smoke lazily. The barkeep nearly dropped his glass as he spun around at the sound of my voice. He was a lanky man, of average height, with a small rat-like face and greasy brown hair that hung limply around his face.

"Na…-Nariko! When did you…? We all assumed you'd… quit." he stammered, wringing his dish towel nervously.

"Yeah, I bet you did," I said, taking a deep drag. "Well, you heard right. I'm here for my last paycheck, Tatsu."

"Paycheck? You ain't getting shit!" He said with a smirk. "You left without a warning little girl. What makes you think you can just waltz in here and demand to get paid?"

I could feel their eyes boring holes into the back of my skull, could feel them listening intently. I casually leaned forward menacingly, lowering my voice, "You _will_ give me my paycheck. And out of the kindness of your heart, you will give me a nice going-away bonus, too." I grabbed his wrist and forced it onto the counter, raising my cigarette and letting it hover an inch above his hand. His rat-like face twisted up in fear, his eyes trapped in my gaze as he attempted to wrench his hand free. His struggle seemed feeble to me, it only made me tighten my vice-like grip. I lowered the smoldering cigarette half an inch. He could see the indifference in my face. I really didn't care if I really burned his hand or not. He stopped struggling, knowing that I wouldn't give a shit, that I wasn't bluffing. "How about we go have a nice private chat in the back office Tatsu?" I glanced pointedly at the figure seated at the end of the counter. Tatsu nodded nervously.

The figure hadn't moved or acknowledged that anything was amiss sing I had gotten there. I let go of Tatsu's wrist and stamped out the cigarette on the counter. He immediately snatched his hand back and hovered over I protectively.

He motioned for me to follow him and we both went through a short hallway off to the side of tha bar counter. We passed the bathroom and entered a door near the end of the hall. We were in a small, cramped office, enough room for two chairs, a cluttered desk, and a small safe against the far wall. Tatsu crouched down beside the safe and fiddled with the combination. He counted out some money from a stack of bills I could see over his shoulder. He stood and dropped small wad onto the desk, "There! Your wages from the last few weeks. You should get going, don't you think? Unless you're in the mood to run into a few friends," he said contemptuously.

"I'll leave in a minute," I said calmly, counting out the money. "But you seem to have forgotten about my bonus Tatsu."

"Bonus! Consider yourself lucky I even gave you that much, girlie!" he snapped angrily. "I never agreed to any bonus!"

" 'Course you did. It must've slipped your mind. You must be getting old, Tatsu. You're going senile," I declared. I strode over and shoved him down onto chair to clear the way to the safe. "Here, I'll get it myself old man."

"Look here! You can't just…!" he sputtered as I grabbed the stack of money. I heard a strangled little cry behind me. I glanced over my shoulder and smirked. He was searching his jacket pockets desperately. "Looking for this?" I held up a small switchblade and flipped it open. He froze, disbelief in his eyes. "Don't look so surprised,," I laughed. "I took it when I grabbed your wrist. Couldn't have you pulling this out on my, now could I?"

I stuffed the money in the inner pocket of my coat and turned to go. Tatsu eyed the blade nervously. I snickered and buried the edge of the blade deep into the desk on my way out. I waved vaguely over my shoulder, "Later."

"You…. You're not normal!" he cried. "You fucking freak!" I glanced back, a thin sneer on my face. "Ya think I don't know that?"

I took the back exit at the end of the short hall and slipped into a back alley. I wandered out onto a busy street and walked on, chuckling to myself. 'Always knew it'd be easy to screw that guy over. He can't call the cops on me 'cause that place ain't even legal.' I thought smugly. Even so, his words nagged at the at the very back of my mind. Yeah, I knew I wasn't your typical gal. There was plenty of stuff about me that marked my abnormality. Shit, my freaking _tears_ were enough of a clue. Yep, Nariko the freak. Nariko the weirdie.

I had wandered into the park and strolled past the playground full of little kids. I found an old tree set far back from the usual areas people visited. I lay back at the base of the tree, nestled comfortably between two large roots, invisible from the trail. I sighed wearily and closed my eyes, my mind wandering back to those awkward years at the orphanage.

A drop of water hit my cheek and the faint patter of rain reached my ears. Another drop landed on my face and I tightened my eyelids and I rolled over, hiding my face in my arms. "Idiot woman, you're going to catch a cold if you stay out here. Get up," a voice ordered.

A/N: Ok, so this concludes Chapter 6. And I ain't telling ya who that was! Bwahaha! Y'all have to wait 'til chapter 7 to find out!! ;] Review n' y'all let me know what ya think.


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